Dear teacher: I need you to know a few things about my child. She came to our family though adoption and I know this may sound oddly confessional to you, even perhaps a little bit overly friendly. But I need you to know this because I am nothing if not by now an expert on my child. She will need more in your class than many of the other students. Oh she is bright alright and she loves school, but you see September for her is hard. So hard that she will come home and explode several nights before…
-
-
Anyone who knows me really well knows that I adore Jodi Picoult and am rapidly working my way through everything she’s ever published. Today I finished reading Handle With Care, a truly beautiful poignant story about a family pushed to the brink of breaking by a daughter, Willow’s disability and a lawsuit that the family initiates. Willow has osteogenesis imperfecta and the fact that I can spell that by memory now is one of the many reasons I adore this author. So this is to be a strange list hyphen book review of the many reasons why this author is inspirational…
-
Thriftybits is my first ever roundup of ideas that are affordable for families. I’m dubbing this Thriftybits. This is a post truly inspired by the name of my blog – thriftymommastips. So in that spirit here are my best tips to pass along this week, the first week of September that both of my children have been in school at the same time. Yippee!! And yet somehow this has translated into more work not less for dear old mommy. How does that work? Also FYI: this is my first giveaway. To win a copy of All The Pretty Horses by…
-
This summer my daughter, now eight, repeatedly asked to do science experiments and she would often tell anyone who inquired that her favourite subject was science, so we thought it would be the ideal time to plan a trip to Ontario Science Centre. We visited the centre on Labour Day weekend. Admission was free with our membership to London Regional Children’s Museum. A very big bonus incentive for us to visit. And visiting on Sunday meant we could park on a side street nearby for free as well. We stayed at a motel for the night so we could also visit family nearby. This…
-
On the ninth hour of the ninth day of the ninth month of 2009 (09,09,09 FASD DAY) we gathered in London’s Victoria Park for a pregnant pause to raise awareness regarding FASD Day. The Number 9 is Symbolic A pregnancy takes 9 months typically. So the number 9 has become a symbol to people in the FASD disability world. Hence the day – the ninth day of the ninth month and this year in 2009 this felt ever so meaningful. The Stats Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder, is an invisible neurological disability, affecting an estimated 300,000 Canadians. The numbers are staggering,…
-
First and foremost, a small disclaimer. Those of you who know me and read me know that I am a Mom of a little girl with FASD fetal alcohol spectrum disorder. So I may be the tiniest bit biased about this one but when I first saw hint of a book for children about FASD I was overjoyed. Anyone who parents a child with FASD struggles with what to tell them and when to tell them about their disability. This book is a way to help parents do that. So what follows here is my interview with Jill Bobula, author of…
-
Well the first day of school is here and thankfully I slept a bit last night despite stressing over which teacher my child would end up with this crucial grade three year. This year I didn’t embarrass anyone with a tearful good-bye. Payton, my eight-year-old sensitive, bright, mostly easy-going girl, bounced out of bed this morning ready to go, got all suited up in her new Hannah Montana style ensemble. She quickly determined that she was in the class she wanted with several friends she knows well and, bonus, she got the teacher she wanted too. Then she essentially waved me away.…
-
Last week’s release of the highly anticipated report from the Expert Panel on Infertility and Adoption was well worth the wait to many of us labouring in the trenches as adoptive parents and advocates. While much of the public debate around the report, dubbed Raising Expectations, was clearly focused on the fact that the panel recommends the Ontario government’s health plan pay for infertility treatments like in vitro fertilization, we in the adoption community were celebrating. Many of us spent hours consulting on this report whether by phone, in written form or in person appearing before the panel. The Adoption Council…
-
Looking for something fun to do in nearby Ohio? In the spirit of Great Wolf Lodge, Columbus, Ohio’s new Fort Rapids Resort and Indoor Water park is a destination in itself. A converted Holiday Inn, at 4560 Hilton Corporate Drive, turned Disney style resort, this water park is a blast. My family and I decided to stay at the water park last week for four nights, while in the city for a conference. After a good deal of research which turned up a great variety of truly lacklustre motels, we happened on this one and took our chances booking on…
-
When Jerry Bruckheimer meets Disney I am not sure it’s always good. At least not for children. I took my two girls to see GForce in 3D yesterday afternoon at the new Westmount VIP cinema in London and was somewhat taken aback by the aggressive testosterone-fuelled children’s movie, which wasn’t really for children, but more for tweens. Multiple explosions I could stand. The really cool graphics with three dimensional effects were super. But the plot was a bit over the top. When the robots and appliances came alive I thought my daughter, 5, would ask to leave, but she held my hand…